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The Indonesian National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) has identified a significant energy breakthrough in the palm oil sector, revealing that industrial waste holds the potential to generate up to 3.9 gigawatts (GW) of electricity. BRIN is currently spearheading the development of technology to process palm oil mill effluent (POME) into methane gas, which can be stored in cylinders to meet community energy demands.
Arif Satria, Chairman of BRIN, presented these findings to President Prabowo Subianto during a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday, October 27. According to Satria, Indonesia's annual production of oil palm fresh fruit bunches reaches approximately 328.43 million tons, generating an estimated 229.9 million cubic meters of liquid waste, or POME.
'If the potential of POME and palm oil waste is harnessed and converted into electricity, the energy that can be generated reaches around 3.9 GW,' Satria stated following the presidential briefing. He emphasized that while POME is a major contributor to methane emissions and global warming, appropriate processing technologies can transform it into a strategic energy source.
BRIN is aiming to move beyond simple biogas production by focusing on advanced storage solutions. The agency is currently researching Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) technology, a material capable of storing significantly larger volumes of gas compared to conventional methods. This innovation is critical for making biogas a viable large-scale energy alternative.
The development of this technology is also linked to Indonesia's high dependence on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) imports, which currently cost the state approximately IDR 97 trillion annually. Satria believes that converting biogas into cylinder-ready gas could serve as a vital domestic energy solution for the future.
While the potential is vast, Satria did not provide a specific timeline for when the technology would be ready for commercial deployment. Furthermore, the 3.9 GW figure remains a capacity estimate based on available waste volumes rather than currently operational electrical output.
Source: VOI.ID